To preface this I'll say that I still believe Australia to be one of the greatest countries in the world to live in, I've got some fantastic mates and I'll always call it home but lately I've began to notice how ruthless and intolerant the younger generations of Aussies are becoming (before you accuse me of being a baby boomer who just wants to rag on young ones, or a bitter social outcast, I'm a 24yo 6'4 fairly popular fella who's lived and traveled quite extensively overseas)
Speaking of which, overseas on vacation/travelling etc? Sure all the Aussies I've met are outgoing and up for a good time (albeit exaggerating all the aussie stereotypes and are hammered half their waking hours)
Back on the mainland though...and this is obviously a major generalization but...having now lived in the US, Canada, and Europe...I've come to realize that (younger) Aussies are probably the most judgmental, and unwelcoming of the lot, even more so than England. In stark opposition of that old stereotype.
Ultra critical of fashion, not nearly as accepting of quirky personalities as US/Canada imo, more racism boiling beneath the surface than we'd ever like to admit, self aware to an extreme degree, incredibly blunt (I realize this is a cultural hallmark and something shared by/inherited from the poms) - I just feel more social pressure here than anywhere else.
I was pretty blind to the fact, until I was in the US and met a nice girl who did an exchange in Perth, but came home early because she said a lot of people were just straight up mean to her. Then I remembered how much our high school ripped into some of the exchange students because of their accents and idiosyncrasies - and I started noticing more and more examples.
Overseas it was common to see somebody 'punching way above their weight' with their SO - quite often I'd see a blonde tanned attractive girl holding hands with a slightly out of shape, shorter, curly haired guy wearing cargo shorts and some unfashionable skate shoes or something. And vice versa, guys who clearly put a lot of effort into their appearance with short, fat, very plain looking girls. Whereas over here, in my experience, people tend to stay in their league a hell of a lot more, which would indicate that there's a lot more importance placed on a physical rather than emotional connection (unless those girls overseas think they're marrying the next zuckerberg and will be a trophy wife in a few years..)
Sidenote: I personally like the uncouth manner - in Japan/US etc people are definitely more polite, but it's culturally ingrained, so you could argue that it's not coming from an authentic place.
So your thoughts? Experiences? Am I making something out of nothing?
TL;DR: I feel that social pressure to look and act certain ways among younger Aussies is enormous,and the general level of tolerance toward peoples quirks and self expression is pretty fucking low. Maybe it's just cultural and has always existed? Maybe this pressure exists in all other cultures but I've been oblivious to it because I was an immigrant whilst living there? Maybe I'm a bloody drongo?
Edit: Despite some condemning language above, I'm not trying to lambaste all young Australians - I'm just stating one perspective and curious how other peoples experiences have been with it.
